Monday 22 February 2010 06.28 EST
First published on Monday 22 February 2010 06.28 EST

The NHS should stop all funding of homeopathy, an influential committee of MPs said today.

The science and technology committee of the House of Commons says there is no evidence that homeopathy has anything other than a placebo effect. It says that manufacturers must no longer be able to make medical claims for homeopathic products.

The hard-hitting report will anger believers in complementary medicine, including Prince Charles who set up a foundation to encourage integration of comlementary medicine into the NHS.

If accepted by the government it would also spell the end of state support for the Royal Homeopathic hospital in London.

The committee's chairman, Phil Willis, said claims for homeopathy are not based on sound science. "It sets an unfortunate precedent for the Department of Health to consider that the existence of a community which believes that homeopathy works is 'evidence' enough to continue spending public money on it."